A Need To Know!! Quickest Yet Unbelievable Places You Could Contract Germs

You keep having recurrent symptoms?, or perhaps you have visited the hospitals more often than normal this new year. Then you may have to take heed to what you do outside the comfort of your home. Check out these germ- ridden places you tend to ignore…

Door Knobs

Surprised? Exactly. Doors are one of those places where you could easily come in contact with germs. It seems so unnoticeable, yet the knobs are pack full of germs. Because they are passed from hands to hands, they harbor much more than you can imagine.

Cash Points (ATM Machines)

These are another subtle avenues to get infected. The buttons on ATM counters harbor more germs than you can think. And you wouldn’t know who is infected already or not. So take care after visiting cash points.

Grocery Stores

Grocery stores contain produce, meat and dairy products which are known transmitters of bacteria such as salmonella, listeria and E. coli. if not stored properly or if cross-contaminated. Remember that hands are the number one way to spread bacteria, so it goes without saying that this place is one of the germiest.

There’s a 72% chance that your shopping cart has fecal bacteria on it (eww) and it’s also an easy way to pick up colds or the flu virus. It’s a good idea to carry anti-bacterial wipes to clean it off before shopping, especially if you have small children that tend to touch everything.

While you cannot avoid germs totally it is imperative you don’t touch your mouth or eyes during your shopping trip – that means no sampling food – and sanitize your hands upon leaving the store, or wash them immediately when you get home.

Public Transportation

This high traffic public area is one of the easiest and quickest ways viruses spread over great distances. Modes of transportation such as airplanes, buses, subways, trains and ships are one of the reasons there are great concerns should a highly infectious and deadly virus appear in the future. Even if we are just talking about influenza, the common cold and other common viruses, we should be conscious to practice good hand hygiene.

Fitness Centers

You’re hitting the gym to try to get fit and healthy. But did you ever wonder why you are getting sick or where that mysterious rash on your arms and legs came from? You might not have to look much farther than your favourite work-out spot. The gym is lurking with bacteria. People are sweating, wiping equipment with dirty towels and touching everything. Keep sanitizer or sanitizer wipes very close by.

Offices

A study by Dr. Gerba, reveals that an office desktop has almost 21, 000 germs per square inch, and phones had more than 25,000 germs per square inch! Desks, phones, computers, keyboards and your mouse are key germ transfer points because people touch them so often, Gerba says. To add to that, 90% of people come into work sick so any sneezing or coughing can leave behind additional bacteria on surfaces for up to three days.

Restaurants

Research has found that even the squeakiest clean looking restaurants are ridden with all kinds of bacteria. The most common germ hot spots are those that are touched the most, and rarely cleaned. The menu is often the first thing you touch before you eat, and one of the least cleaned items. It can carry an average of 185,000 bacteria. Remember that the cold or flu virus can survive for 18 hours on hard surfaces, so it’s a good idea to sanitize or wash your hands after you’ve handed the menu back to the server. Other items to note are the condiments (ketchup, salt and pepper shakers) and lemon wedges that garnish your drinks or are put in your drinks.

Doctor’s Office

So you’re feeling ill and you go to your doctor’s office for help. The moment you touch the door knob, you have potentially contaminated your hand with the germs of all the previous patients from that office.

Everyone there is potentially sick, so you can be sure that the waiting room area is definitely harboring bacteria including influenza, colds, norovirus, streptococcal bacteria and others. Sneezing and coughing patients can quickly spread bacteria in the form of air droplets much farther than you think, so you may want to keep some distance from others.

Hotel Rooms

Although they are cleaned daily, hotel rooms are high-traffic spaces where the risk of the spread of infection to several rooms or areas of the hotel is increased. Ranging from the TV remotes, to the faucets in the toilet, to towels and etc.

Schools

Parents already know this all too well, their children get sick more often from picking up bugs at school. Precautions should be taken as they are taught how to wash their hands when back from school or from outings.